We know, it’s tricky. The restaurant has seen better days since opening its doors in the early nineties. It’s outdated, perhaps even “tacky”? Meanwhile, the rest of your hotel has been updated to reflect modern times. It’s painfully obvious, your restaurant is in desperate need of a renovation, but the task seems overwhelming, so the project is permanently postponed. Unfortunately, the negative reviews on Yelp are piling up fast, so it’s time to “bite the bullet”.
Perhaps your situation isn’t that dire, yet, but it’s always a good idea to look towards the future and determine what actions must be taken to keep your hotel competitive and edgy.
Instead of dwelling on the notion that a restaurant renovation will cost X amount of money, look at it as an investment. That may seem obvious, but the trick lies in taking the correct steps to ensure the renovation will actually be an investment, and not another stuffy-turned-tacky hotel restaurant. If you’re going to renovate, you want the highest ROI possible, and that requires careful consideration and long-term sight, instead of short-term. Here are a few tips and general guidelines to follow when preparing for the next renovation.
Avoid Being “Trendy”
This may seem counter-intuitive. Why wouldn’t you want your hotel restaurant to be the trendiest place in town? Simple, trends end, and become the opposite – old-fashioned, and not in a good way. Basically, avoid patterns, bold colors, or anything else that might easily tie your restaurant to a specific time period or design aesthetic. Instead, shoot for class and elegance, something that seems timeless. Colors that are beautiful, yet don’t draw too much attention. Choose tables and chairs that personify the most attractive and desirable shapes across the ages. The point is, try and think about how your restaurant will appear and feel to guests, five to eight years from now.
Be Sustainable
Sustainability often sounds expensive. Except, most sustainable enhancements available for restaurant renovations continue to recoup costs for years and years to come. Invest in an energy management system. Research lighting options that both provide the desired ambiance, while saving on energy costs. Build with sustainable materials. Sustainability is wise, and will position your hotel as a forward-thinking, industry leader.
Go With the Flow
Find every way possible to remodel with the ability to frequently… well, remodel. The society we live in today is a fast-paced, constantly changing society. You must be adaptable. Similarly to the above advice given about not remodeling to fit any current “trend,” you also want to consider how your restaurant space can be ready for whatever the next technology, food craze, etc. is. Currently, gluten-free is all the rage, and many kitchens are finding that they now must have separate fryers, stove tops and more, in order to avoid cross-contamination. Thinking ahead as you design the layout of the kitchen will save you time and money later, thus capitalizing on investment returns.
A guest’s phone dies, now he’s are sitting in his room, snacking on items he brought with him, waiting for his phone to charge, while his wife watches a movie on the TV. Instead of this scenario, picture that same guest and his wife sitting at a table within the hotel restaurant, charging his phone at the actual table, since the remodel included chic looking charging stations to accommodate increasing technology demands. Now, you have two impressed guests who will likely become brand advocates, and profit earned at the restaurant.
Keeping your guests on property and spending money on more than just the room takes strategy and investment. Often times, guests are more than happy to relax at the hotel entirely, and never step foot outside the door unless necessary. Having a lively, welcoming, and modern-looking restaurant is one successful way to enhance the guest’s overall experience, and increase hotel profits. HMG Hospitality is an expert at aiding hotel’s in creating an individualized strategy for restaurant renovations. Contact us for more details.
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